THE HUDSONIAN GODWIT. 335 



in breadth; its lateral muscles moderately strong, the tendons broad and 

 radiated; the epithelium dense, thick, with numerous longitudinal rugae. Its 

 contents are remains of small shell-fish. Proventricular glands small and 

 very numerous, forming a belt 10 twelfths in breadth. Intestine, efg hj k, 

 2 feet 6 inches long; it curves at first in the usual manner, passes forward to 

 above the heart, then runs backward, and forms seven turns; its width from 

 4^ twelfths to 3 twelfths. Rectum, ^ k, very short, being only \\ inches in 

 length; cceca, i i, 9 twelfths in length, 1^ twelfths in width; the cloaca, k, 

 an oblong dilatation, 5 twelfths in width. 



Trachea 4f inches long, 3 twelfths in breadth, its rings very feeble, 132, 

 with a single dimidiate ring. Bronchial half rings 18. The lateral muscles 

 strong; the sterno-tracheal moderate; a single pair of slender laryngeal 

 muscles groins: to the first bronchial half rii 



THE HUDSONIAN GODWIT. 



ir Limosa hudsonica, Lath. 

 PLATE CCCXLIX.— Adult Male and Young Female. 



This species, which is of rare occurrence in any part of the United States, 

 is scarcely ever found farther south along the coast than the State of Mary- 

 land. I had never seen it in the flesh, until I went to Boston in 1832, when 

 I found specimens of it in the market late in September. An old gunner in 

 my employ brought me eight or ten in the course of a month, but they were 

 all young birds. From one of them my son drew the figure in the plate. 

 While I was at Pictou Professor MacCulloch presented me with a pair of 

 adult birds in beautiful plumage. When we were on our way towards 

 Labrador, the fishermen and inhabitants of the Magdeleine Islands, who gave 

 the name of Curlews to the Godwits, assured me that this species breeds 

 there in some marshes at the extremity of the principle island, and that they 

 were in the habit of killing them as soon as they were able to fly, when they 

 were considered excellent food. We saw none, however, on our voyage 

 farther north, and in Labrador and Newfoundland nobody seemed to know 

 them. 



